Awards Special Edition
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PHOTOGRAPHERS TRUST WILKINSON CAMERAS.
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© Gary Neville
Contents 12
The Founders Cup Photographer of the Year Awards
14 18 22
Mark Lynham The Guild’s Photographer of the Year
26 30 38 58
Image of the Year - 2018 Members Choice | Judges Choice
© Gary Neville
The Top Photographers Image of the Month - 2018 Rob Hill Pricing. It’s just another tool Paul Callaghan Special Contribution Award Karah Mew Story of my Nan and her Camera Customer Service How to use Social Media to your Advantage
74 78
Gary Neville Qualified Photographer
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Glyn Dewis How to create fake shadows
©Emma Campbell
Emma Campbell Qualified Professional Photographer
©Emma Campbell Issue 29 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Front Cover Nathalie Rouquette “For those of you who (like me) work best with deadlines, and for those of you who (like me), find their daily life takes over, will know the feeling of loving and at the same time hating the last day of the month! Sitting and staring at the computer screen thinking about what to enter into the Image of the Month (IOM). The Guild’s Image of the Month is terrific, it pushes me and makes my photography creative. Almost a year ago, I was dreading the end of February; I didn’t think I had anything good enough to enter. So, I went into my studio and found a dried thistle. Set up a shot and took it! I decided to work with some textures and create a ‘moody’ image. Well, to be perfectly honest that is what it started, but, not the way I planned or how it ended up! After opening Photoshop and having a little play I then changed the colours to neon and turquoise, colours I was quite pleased with it. I then showed it to my Guild Buddy Group, who loved it too! On 28th February 2018, I entered this image into February’s Image of the Month and awarded a Gold. Last Saturday at the Guild Awards the image was awarded runner-up in the Digital Art Category.
https://nathaliefoto.dk
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Steve & Lesley Thirsk The Guild of Photographers
What a start to 2019! We are very excited to announce that the Guild has, not one, but 5 fabulous new Trade Partners - all with special deals for Guild Members. They are .. LOUPEDECK - Manufacturers of a unique editing console for use with images and video! They are based in Finland but have UK suppliers. SIM - One of the leading print supplying, album manufacturing and frame manufacturers in the UK DIGITALAB - -A multi award winning UK print lab supplying all your photographic product needs, prints, and awards winning frames. CEWE - The largest manufacturer of albums in Europe – they have produced over 35million to date! THE GOOD WEDDINGS MOBILE APP - A unique Wedding App which will promote, support and deliver ideal marketing for any photographer as well as being of interest to the wedding guests too. You will find out more about these great suppliers in this edition of Creative Light! A new year is always a good time to put in place new plans to push yourself, be that in a photography, business related way or personal of course. Guild mentoring is one small thing that can have a huge impact on your photography for very little outlay and can be done in the comfort of your own home – even just one session can have a massive impact! Those that have got involved with the mentoring programme cannot praise it enough. Many of the speakers at the Photohubs event in Crewe on 1st and 2nd February reinforced this…so if you’ve never done it, put it on your ‘to do’ list for 2019, remembering that the sooner you get involved the sooner your personal development journey can begin! You can find out more by emailing sabrina@photoguild.co.uk. Speaking of the PhotoHubs event at Crewe – What an event it was! The speakers and workshops were so inspirational, and the rooms packed! The event finished with a print competition and live judging. The Judges had a nearly impossible task as the standard was so high, but in the end the choose Neil Bremner as the winner, who had gone that ‘extra mile’ by cleverly incorporating his mount into the image itself. The Guild Awards night, celebrating the results of the 2018 competition followed Photohubs at the stunning Crewe Hall! Considering there had been over 13,000 entries in just 10 months, all those that have achieved the Photographer’s Bar or been shortlisted as a finalist or Top 10 or 20 Photographer, have done amazingly well! The atmosphere was literally ‘electric’ from the word go, with what sounded like everyone joining in with the opening song “This is me!”… and so it continued all night, with genuine delight for all the award winners. It was a true night of celebration culminating in a standing ovation, cheers and applause for a very humbled and emotional Mark Lynham who won the overall Photographer of the Year award for the third consecutive time! The Awards night was all the more special as two of the original founders of the Guild, Jo Doorbar and Rosemary Gee were present, as well as the previous Guild Director Joan Roberts! You will see a lot more about the amazing winners and their inspirational images in this edition..Enjoy!
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Editor
Julie Oswin
All photography businesses experience lean periods, no matter how hard you try, the enquiries don’t seem to come in and when they do, it seems impossible to convert the enquiry into sale or booking. When things aren’t going well, and our bookings are down the first thing we do is look for problems and we all over think the situation. We believe it is us, our photography, our prices and when we do talk to our prospective clients we hesitate and wait for the objections to come. We make excuses believing that there will be objections like - “I’m too expensive”, “... the studio down the road is selling all the digital files for £25’ and we how do we compete? One of the first things we must do is believe in our photography, our business and above all, ourselves. Once we start to put things into perspective and stop trying so hard, our business will start to pick up, the enquiries and the emails will start to come in. Have a read of Rob Hill’s exellent article in this edition about pricing on page 24. This edition of Creative Light features a beautiful story about Karah Mew’s Nan, her camera, the images she captured and the memories of Karah’s childhood. It will bring a tear to your eye! When ferociously lousy weather brought by Storm Deirdre battered parts of the UK on Saturday 14th December with snow, gales and bursts of freezing rain I was photographing a wedding with my friend Fi Millington-Pipe at a venue in Leicestershire. Storm Dierdre was due to hit us at about the time the marriage ceremony ended. The bride and groom were hoping that we would get a small window to grab a few photographs before we headed off to the wedding venue. The timing of Storm Dierdre couldn’t have been more perfect.... not! As I opened the church doors to photograph the couple in the doorway I was blown back inside! It was a bit windy! Photographs inside the Church were the order of the day. Before we headed off to the venue we found this little corner out of the wind, the freezing rain but not the cold. Winter Weddings are tough; hard work; batteries die quickly; your hands turn blue; you can’t press the buttons on the camera, but, at the same time, winter weddings can be exciting too. When low light gives you the warmth of tungsten and an atmosphere to create a little bit of magic. The Spring Equinox is the time when Winter ends, and Spring begins! The Northern Hemisphere Spring Equinox will be at 21.58 on Wednesday 20th March 2019. Yay! Only a few more weeks to go. 8
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https://www.julieoswintraining.com
© Julie Oswin
Editors Choice Joanna Bradley Awarded Silver - September 2018
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The Guild of Wedding Photographers
1989 - 2019
Thirty years ago, four good friends came together in a front room of one of their homes, concerned about the
standards of wedding photography, and wanting to assist with photography education, as well as protect those committed to high standards. The Guild of Wedding Photographers was born! The Manual of Guidance was created, which members acquired in parts, and levels of attainment were introduced – the top-level being Craftsman at that time. The wisdom in the Manual is still relevant today. These great friends also toured the country teaching, newsletters prepared at home and printed by David Kilpatrick of Icon publications were posted to members. Remember 1988 was the year the world wide web (www) was introduced and in its infancy, hence all was done by post. They felt it important members had Professional insurance protection (something only available to key white collar sectors at the time) so linked in with the Alan Stephenson partnership to achieve this (now known as InFocus insurance). This was trailblazing … if it wasn’t for Roy, Ian, Josie and Rosemary you may not have had your PL/PI cover today. Much is owed to the magnificent four! Things have changed over the years, and many wedding photographers worked in other genres too to maximise their businesses, so the word ‘wedding’ was dropped from the associations name to encompass all genres. Today, the Guild of Photographers still builds on the foundations they set – for example, the insurance cover they started has been expanded to include a full business support package. The Guild also still remains true to the original desire to improve standards, and the ethics have certainly not changed. Without their insight, commitment and desire to make a difference, the Guild of Photographers would, quite simply, not be here. Roy Doorbar, Ian Gee and their wives Josie & Rosemary have had a profound impact on so many people, both in and outside the photographic industry. Sadly, around 2 years ago, Roy and Ian passed away within weeks of each other but we were honoured that Josie and Rosemary came to the Guild Awards and it was with great pride that after the launch of the Guild of Wedding Photographers we can acknowledge all that they have achieved and created. May the Guild of Photographers continue to stay true to your original objectives and ethics in the years to come! - Steve & Lesley Thirsk
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“The best thing I ever did whilst Director was to choose Steve and Lesley to run the Guild�
- Joan Roberts
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The Founders Cup WINNER - Claire Osborne “The Founders Cup - 2018” was sponsored by Epson and the winner received an Epson Printer worth £1000”
The Guild of Photographers started life at the Guild of Wedding Photographers in 1988 and It’s founders were Roy Doorbar and Ian Gee Their aims for the Guild were to support photographers and raise standards in the industry by encouraging personal development, and they achieved a huge amount, including the introduction of something all photography businesses take for granted today – PL and PI insurance (helped greatly by who we know as InFocus insurance). Roy and Ian both sadly passed away in late 2016, and the ‘Founders Cup’ is a new prestigious photography award which acknowledges what they started, and their aims. [Claire Osborne, Jo Doorbar, Rosemary Gee and Phil McMullin, Epson]
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The Photographers Bar WINNERS - 2018 “A unique distinction awarded to very few photographers who have successfully had images assessed by the Guild over the course of a year’s competition, and attained a score equating to an award for each entry made, thereby evidencing an exceptional level of professional skill and consistency”. Shaheen Ali -- Jason Allison -- Victoria Amrose -- Ann Aveyard -- Mark Bannister -- Imelda Bell -- Joan Blease -- Sharon Bolt -- Jayne Bond -- Joanna Bradley -- Lyn Braund -- Garry Bree -- Neil Bremner -- Magda Bright -- Heather Burns -- Ed Burrows --Emma Campbell -- Laurie Campbell -- Stephanie Chapman -- Kayra Cinar -- Steve Collins -- Dawn Cotterell -- Catherine Dashwood -- Rob Dolton -- Ela Drozynska -- Sue Dudley -Emily Endean -- Ani Evans -- Steve Evans -- Peter Farrington -- Andrew Ford -- Cheryl Foreman -- Rebecca Goutorbe -- Duncan Graham -- Phil Green -- Teresa Gregory -- Maryna Halton -- Lynne Harper -Hayley Harraden -- Sam Hayward -- Carol Higgins -- Jennifer Higgs -- Janes Hodges -- Chris Hunter -Nick Jackson -- Scott Johnson -- Carola Kayen-Mouthaan -- Ian Knaggs -- Slavomir Kondratovic -- Judith Lawley -- Polly Lee -- Sian Lewis -- Debbie Longmore -- Tracey Lund -- Mark Lynham -- Tracy Main -- Daniel McLean -- Frances van der Merwe -- Abi Moore -- Ruth Morris -- Helen Murphy -- Vicky Norton -- Stacey Oliver -Claire Osborne -- Ania Pankiewicz-Tonge -- Neil Pitchford -- Iain Poole -- Sandie Powner -- Henry Ransby -- John Retter -- Karen Riches -- Jean Rolfe -- Nathalie Rouquette -- Helen Rowan -- Lisa Scott -- Jeff Sham -Sian Shipley -- Sarah Smith -- Matthew Smith -- Laura Spence -- Cliff Spooner -- Lynn Stanfield -- Tina Stobbs -Lisa Sumner -- Laurence Sweeney -- Jennifer Taylor -- Mel Taylor -- Helen Walker -- Clare Walpole -- Deanne Ward -- Tina Ward -- Tim Wilde -- Sarah Wilkes -- Katrina Wilson -- Helen Woodland -- Peter Woods -- Michaela Young
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The Guild’s Mark Lynham Photographer of the Year - 2018 Photographer of the Year Mark Lynham
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Mark Lynham joined the Guild during 2013 and has been one of our most prolific entrants into the Image of the Month Competition (IOM). In his first year, he won the Open category and was runner-up Photographer of the Year. Then after two years of shortcomings went on to win the Open category a further three times. Mark has worked hard at his photography and has now achieved the Guild’s ‘All Round’ Photographer of the Year for the last three years, 2016, 2017 and 2018. An incredible achievement for Mark. At the Photohubs event at Crewe Hall, February 2019 Mark was invited to give his first ever talk to the Guild photographers, titled “The Life of an IOM Junkie”. The inspirational talk Mark gave was well received by all. Mark has shared his showreel of his awarded images for you to view. Mark’s is self-employed, and a Property Manager and is a hobbyist photographer. He is known mostly for the dramatic aviation images he loves to shoot wildlife while out walking with his partner. Mark doesn’t shoot much in the way of people; his son has made regular appearances in his entries over the years as Mark believes in making the most of what he has available to him. He has wildlife in his garden which he photographs as his business doesn’t give him much spare time to go on the holidays that he would love to do. Mark announced at the awards weekend that he is retiring from entering from Image of the Month, but as we know that he is an ‘IOM Junkie’... … I guess we’ll have to wait and see”
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Overall Image of the Year 2018 THE MEMBERS CHOICE
WINNER - Emily Endean RUNNER-UP - Tracey Lund
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Overall Image of the Year 2018 THE JUDGES CHOICE
WINNER - Claire Osborne RUNNER-UP - Roger Jepson & Heather Burns
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Photo: Judith Lawley
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The Guild Photographers of the Year - 2018 OPEN CATEGORY
NEWBORN & BABY
WINNER: Mark Lynham RUNNER-UP: Jason Allison
WINNER: Joanna Bradley RUNNER-UP: Lisa Sumner
Ian Knaggs Tracey Lund Claire Osborne Henry Ransby Ed Burrows Heather Burns Cliff Spooner Duncan Graham Ann Aveyard Jayne Bond Sian Shipley Sue Dudley Peter Woods Andrew Ford Nathalie Rouquette Judith Lawley Iain Poole Debbie Longmore
Lynne Harper Sarah Wilkes Debbie Longmore Sian Shipley Kayra Cinar Tina Stobbs Sarah Smith Nathalie Rouquette
WEDDINGS WINNER: Scott Johnson RUNNER-UP: Ann Aveyard Ani Evans Sam Hayward Victoria Amrose Stacey Oliver Lynn Stanfield Carol Higgins Jeff Sham Martin Leckie
PEOPLE WINNER: Sarah Wilkes RUNNER-UP: Maryna Halton Claire Osborne Ania Pankiewicz-Tonge Imelda Bell Heather Burns Sian Lewis Iain Poole Joan Blease Roxanne Bunn Mark Lynham Carola Kayen-Mouthaan Teresa Gregory Daniel McLean Debbie Longmore Polly Lee Helen Walker Jason Allison Ann Aveyard Kayra Cinar Issue 29 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Rob Hill Rob Hill is a life-long photography enthusiast with a product / commercial photography business – MarketingShotz as well as a successful technology marketing consultancy. He qualified as a Master Craftsman with the Guild of Photographers and is also a member of their judging panel. His commercial work can be seen at www.marketingshotz.com and his personal work is found at www.robhillphoto.com
Pricing: It’s just another tool Pricing is close to the top of the list of things that many people in business worry about most. Often it’s not even their own pricing that is the source of concern, it’s the competition’s. This non-value-add activity consumes valuable time that could be better spent growing the business instead of worrying about what someone else is doing. Time after time people are given advice that goes along the lines of ‘you should set your pricing by adding your business expenses, living costs and desired salary and dividing by the number of events / weddings / product shoots you can do in a year’. This is bad advice. It doesn’t work. If you think about this for a minute - people’s individual circumstances vary so much there can be no universal ‘rule’. As an example, make a rough calculation for a young person still living with parents, for someone with a mortgage, two kids at university and expensive taste in holidays and for a semi-retired person who has paid off their mortgage and owns all their camera kit outright. Each of these people could be starting out in photography and each would get very different results from the guidance above, yet they could live in the same town and operate in the same market. The advice doesn’t work. Markets not costs set pricing. If the advice has any value at all, it is simply to define a minimum level of price that will support a lifestyle. If the market you are trying to address doesn’t support this price level (won’t pay that much, not enough work available) then you need to have a long, hard think and take your business in a different direction.
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Many business owners worry too much and too long about price, allowing that to detract from activities that will grow their business, such as prospecting for customers, developing new products or services or any one of the hundred things they should be doing as a business owner. Leading with price in your marketing and sales strategy is a very dangerous game and is very unlikely to bring business success, for a number of reasons:No matter how low your ‘super cheap’ price is, one day soon, a competitor will be cheaper and you can only remain cheapest by cutting your price further. How low can you afford to go? If you’re working with repeat customers, the ones who only buy on price will soon leave you when someone cheaper comes along, unless you can educate them about value If the main (or only) thing you talk about when you speak to a customer is price, then you educate customers to only think about price when making a decision, and they will only want a lower price, never higher. If the customers you target only buy on price, then any value you bring or service you deliver is not relevant - it is only your price list that will get you the job or not If you win customers by discounting, then to retain them you will have to continue the discounts and possibly discount more over time Pricing is simply one of several marketing tools that marketers and business owners have at their disposal. When you’re selling a commodity item where every product is equal then price forms an important part of the sales proposition. With a true commodity, everything else is equal, so price becomes the sole or main differentiator. Very rarely can photography be considered a commodity - in fact, far from it. Every photographer has an individual style for their photography and they themselves are an individual in the way they approach business and their customers. The result is that there are many other things that can be used by customers as the basis of a purchasing decision even before price enters the conversation and successful businesses will steer their customers in this direction. It is easy to fall into the trap of believing that the lowest price will win the deal. In fact, this is often very far from the truth. There are more customers that will seek best value instead of lowest price.
offerings might be termed ‘good, better, best’ or ‘silver, gold, platinum’ or even something else, whatever works for your business. Within the three options, the lower end package is clearly the cheapest, but the middle package is constructed to offer better value – much more for a slightly higher price. The final package will simply be premium priced, and offer less value than the middle package. The low price for the ‘good’ package will bring in enquiries, which, as part of the sales process can be up-sold to the ‘better’ package by talking to the customer about the better value. When most customers compare the ‘good’ to the ‘best’, they will decide that ‘good’ represents the best value and buy that package – but those customers that simply must have the best may just buy the ‘best’ package. With this approach, businesses have three packages that allow them to address three separate and distinct sectors of the market – customers that want the cheap, no-frills package, those that want best value and those that want the best possible service / package. It also gives a talking point with the customer to explain the value in each package. Experiments on a whole variety of products have shown that in most cases, the mid-priced (‘better’ or best value) package is the one that sells best – not the cheapest. You shouldn’t be afraid to play with pricing a little if the current approach is not working. Don’t tear up the price bracketing entirely, instead reduce or increase individual prices or tweak the contents of each package slightly (add a better album, throw in a free frame) and see what happens – then keep tweaking until it works. Markets and customers will change over time, so keep monitoring and adjusting to keep your business heading in the direction that you want. To summarise: (i) pricing cannot be calculated or set by a formulaic approach (ii) selling on price alone is rarely a successful strategy when selling a differentiated product such as photography (iii) pricing is simply a tool and when used well can control customers and help you manage your business better and more profitably. Don’t be afraid of pricing. It is just another tool – use it to your advantage. - Rob Hill
Using price as a tool, along with a little sales skill can help you direct customers to the particular product or service that you want them to buy – usually the most profitable or easiest for you to deliver. There have been many studies conducted on a technique known as ‘price bracketing’, which is used by many businesses - including photographers. In fact, you may already be doing this without realising it. Typically this technique involves offering three products – for example, be a wedding package, a studio shoot and prints / frames or three levels of event coverage. These
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Special Contribution Award Paul Callaghan ‘As the Guild was celebrating its 30th Anniversary it was very apt that they acknowledged someone who had been in business 30 years as a photographer – The one and only Mr Paul Callaghan! Uniquely, Paul’s photographic career was kick-started by condoms and a Priest! Paul is from Ireland and whilst a young man, the sale of contraceptives there was not permitted. Because of that many young men went to Northern Ireland for weekend breaks, acquiring condoms at the same time. On a trip over the border with friends, he saw something in a shop window that called to him. His friends bought condoms – Paul bought his first camera! In the coming months he taught himself how to use it from the camera manual and Amateur Photography magazine! Photography had become a passion in Paul’s life. Paul started his working career as an electrician, met and fell in love with Margaret and literally on the day they got married the company he worked for laid him off, leaving him without a job. There wasn’t much work available at that time so Paul took literally any part-time work he could get, between periods of no work. One day, whilst walking in his town, a Priest came out of a Newsagents and asked Paul how he was, and what he loved to do. Paul expressed his love of photography and the Priest said to follow that love and create a living from it, so he did just that. He took part-time work with the local newspaper, invested in training and pushed himself, so he could master his craft. Master it he did! A few years later Mr Callaghan had been recognised with over 400 Gold awards in competitions (yes 400). He had achieved a Fellowship and also became a Qualified European photographer. In more recent years he joined the Guild of Photographers, where he is acknowledged a Master Craftsman. He is, without doubt, one of the most talented Irish photographers of all time! Paul is also a valued judge and mentor for the Guild, and has been for other associations before. He has a desire to pay it forward and never hesitates to fly over to the UK to help – in fact he would swim to help if he could. He is also, quite simply, one of the humblest, most sincere and nicest people you could know – a true gent who is forever smiling. He has a special aura … and is a very special person! We are proud to acknowledge Paul’s contribution to photography and photographers” - Steve & Lesley Thirsk
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Colour management can be easy As a photographer, you are likely familiar with colour management. However, a recent survey conducted by Datacolor revealed that only 15% of the 400 photographers quizzed felt they had a good knowledge of colour management. To help photographers master the art of colour
management technology, Datacolor have produced an extensive colour management guide. ‘Spyder5 eBook: Color management can be easy’ is a free six-chapter guide providing practical advice to help any photographer or videographer understand colour management, from the basics to the advanced. Here’s a taster from the first chapter.
Why use color management equipment? High-quality color management that is time and cost-efficient is almost impossible to achieve without color management equipment. Anyone who has ever set up their printer for fine art prints and has ended up using an entire ink cartridge on high-quality paper for mere test prints will have plenty to say about this. The concept of color management involves coordinating systems so that once taken, the image on the output side (monitor, printer or other output medium) appears as close to the original as possible. This also includes deliberate changes made to image content. In other words, photographic processing needs to be reproduced on the output side as it was carried out on the monitor. Why? Depending on the make and model, digital cameras have different color characteristics that can be corrected using a color calibration tool. What’s more, lenses can also introduce color traits, while low-quality lenses even create clearly visible color casts and light falloffs. These can be almost impossible to modify. We can, however, influence the appearance of the digital image on the display. Without settings, we also see an interpretation of the image that may not be representative of its true colors. This is determined by the electronic components of the display and its age. It gets trickier when it comes to printing images on paper. When we convert the light colors, which have determined the process so far, into printing inks, it can cause distortions.
The competence of the eye is not enough In short, we are moving between physical worlds of color. We can work with several devices, which each individually interpret the colors for us. If you rely solely on the expertise of the naked eye and make adjustments according to your vision, you will very quickly reach your limits. Every additional device included in a color workflow will heighten the complexity. To add to this, color deviations don’t behave in a linear fashion, but vary according to color saturation level and the nature of the colors themselves. Finally, it is important to keep in mind the color constancy phenomenon. You’ll notice how fast your eye compensates color casts, when you change the color profile on your monitor. Regardless of whether the colors are right or wrong, our brain hides slight color casts within minutes. This phenomenon is called color constancy. This is similar to situations in which we quickly become accustomed to the brightness or darkness of our surroundings. Sign up at www.datacolor.com/ebema-tg to receive your copy of ‘Spyder5 eBook: Color management can be easy’. Chapters will be released in three-week intervals.
© 2018 Datacolor Inc. All rights reserved. Datacolor and Spyder registered trademarks of Datacolor. Issue 29 -are Creative Light Magazine : 31
Neil Bremner Photohubs Print Competition - 2019
WINNING IMAGE In 2017, I invested for the Studio my own Canon Pro 1000 printer to have more control over the presentation of my work when it comes to qualifications, competitions and my clients. Paper choice is something that is often mentioned and how important it is choose printing paper that compliments the image. I have invested in a selection of papers from Fotospeed which work with different styles. For this winning image (opposite) I selected the Natural Soft Textured Bright White 315 paper as this paper allowed the flame saturation to stand out. When I started to mount the image, I felt that there was still something missing. The mount wasn’t singing to me. Then the idea of bringing the mount and the picture together by burning the mount above the umbrella came to me, and I was instantly excited. However, I must have used at least six mounts until the burn pattern fitted perfectly with the flame of the umbrella. The standard of the print competition is incredible, and each year the work gets stronger. So, this has undoubtedly been one of the proudest moments of my photographic career so far. It still hasn’t sunk in that I won! Thank you to the Guild of Photographers once again. - Neil Bremner www.madeportraits.com Somerset
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Image of the Year Avant-Garde & Contemporary Portrait Category
WINNER - Richard Miliusis RUNNER-UP - Claire Wilson
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Image of the Year Baby & Toddler Category
WINNER - Joanna Bradley RUNNER-UP - Tina Stobbs
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TRANSFORM YOUR CREATIVE WORKFLOW WITH LOUPEDECK+
MEET ADAM KARNACZ OF FIRST MAN PHOTOGRAPHY
of natural talent, hard work is the key to everything. Ever since I
Adam is a British landscape photographer and filmmaker. It was
creation of art and the business sides of being a pro photographer.
in North Yorkshire, England where he developed a true passion for
Its a journey that requires patience and a pragmatic approach to
nature and the outdoors. Adam’s professional experience ranges
opportunities both big and small.
merely considered going professional, working harder than the next guy or girl has been my base ethos. This includes with my
from wedding photography to developing himself into a full-time landscape photographer, which he enthusiastically documents on
How would you describe your style of photography?
his Youtube channel, @FirstManPhotography. Every Sunday, Adam
I am not sure the word “style” is descriptive enough. My “photographic
shares with his fans inspiring content from his travels and provides
personality” is made up of various styles that consists of using
a calming approach to technical processes such as composition,
different focal lengths, long exposures, and capturing new locations.
lighting, and editing.
Natural landscapes are definitely a signature of my work, but I aim for my images to tell the story of the landscape and evoke emotions
Like Adam, Loupedeck+ the photo and video editing console, strives to evoke creativity and enthusiasm by providing a faster
The videos I create have also become a big part of my
and more intuitive approach to the editing workflow.
photographic personality. The videos allow me to expand the story around the image and serve as a documentary on how the
Are photographers born or made, and can you describe
image was made. It also gives me a platform to talk about key
your successful journey?
areas related to landscape photography such as the environment,
Some people are definitely born with a bigger artistic streak,
conservation and the positive benefit doing landscape
with a natural appreciation of story. Even with a small portion
photography can have on your mental health.
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DISCOVER HOW ADAM TRANSFORMED HIS CREATIVE WORKFLOW WITH LOUPEDECK+ What sparked your interest in Loupedeck?
What technical element of Loupedeck+ improved your editing experience? The placement of the controls is very well thought out straight out of the box. For example, the controls for white balance, that include temperature and tint, are located right next to each other.
For a while I had been looking for a control surface to introduce
Without thinking I started controlling both at the same time,
into my workflow for post-production in both photography and
using only one hand, which further increased my efficiency and
video. I wanted to move away from the mouse and keyboard in
creativity. It’s a really natural experience!
the hope of increasing productivity and making the connection between my hands and my work on the screen feel more natural. My search for this led me to Loupedeck+.
What key functions of Loupedeck+ would you recommend to other professional photographers? I was a big fan of the control settings straight out -the-box but
How has Loupedeck+ affected your creativity when editing?
the software allows the photographer to customise the controls
Using the Loupedeck+ has been an exciting experience. Having
as they see fit using the custom mode. The additional dedicated
used a keyboard and mouse for many years, improvements in
custom buttons are also extremely useful and all my most regular
efficiency were not immediate, as it took some time to learn the
Lightroom functions can be added to them such as changing
new console. Creatively, the improvements were immediate.
between the Library and Develop module.
Having the tactile connection to individual controls produced a more natural and artistic experience. I am now able edit without taking my eyes off of the image, which has become an invaluable part of my creative process.
...INDIVIDUAL CONTROLS MADE POST PRODUCTION A MORE NATURAL AND ARTISTIC EXPERIENCE.
Loupedeck+is available for purchase on Loupedeck.com,
Be sure to check out Adam Karnacz’s personal website and
Wex Photo Video, Amazon.co.uk.
subscribe to his social channels! firstmanphotography.com
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Karah Mew
Story of my Nan and her Camera! Talking to Creative Light Magazine, Karah shares the story of her Nan and the way she captured the family, their childhood and a lady who will always be remembered having a ‘big black camera’ in front of her face! Karah Mew is a storytelling photographer with a Fine Art background. Photographing under the name The Glass Narrator, her main drive is preserving her family’s everyday normality and celebrating the small moments in this fast pace way of life.
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My Nan was our visual family historian. You only
have to open her boxes of photographs or visit her home to see the real memories she made for us all. Working her way through at least two rolls of film when we visited, she never held back on shooting. Within an era of limited frames, she was never worried about overshooting or putting in a new roll of film if needed; she made a picture if the photograph needed making. Over the years she has produced the most amazing photographic diaries of my childhood which were always printed and placed into albums to be enjoyed time and time again. I don’t remember her telling us to stand there, sit still, look here, now smile - she seemed to relish in the moment of us, photographing us as we were, with images that hold great intimacies and layers of humour - her photos then and now never seemed to be just snapshots, they were greater than that. Looking at her photographs now as an adult and a professional photographer, I feel that I am holding the most beautiful love letters written with her eyes. They always echo loud in my ears of the passing of time, highlighting how fast life goes by. When holding my Nan’s albums, I am always reminded that unlike any other art medium, there is no present with photography. Viewing images is still about enjoying a moment of the past in the present day, equally, it is also proof that we had at one point in our lives have been there together cementing the knowledge of our family as I know it and gives me a sense of belonging. My childhood with her was spent playing, and even though she was always there with us, at the moment. I can see her now, standing back from the scene and photographing us with that long black camera across her face. She was never a ‘photographer’ in that sense, as she had no real understanding of the science behind the camera, but that never stopped her from enjoying the process or hindered her skills in creating pictures. Over the past two years, I have been working daily developing my visual voice, and I have spent a lot of time listening to what it wants to say. My passions are the real moments of love and connection, the
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mundane which soon become the longed-for past and times of stillness and reflection. As I have grown as an artist during this time, I have slowly seen that striving to make ‘wow’ photos don’t always give you the same emotional feeling looking at the images at a later date. Photographing my own family, I started to ditch the idealised imagery which is thrust upon us via social media, and I started to look, almost relax enough to let my life be the thing I’m searching for when photographing. In a world full of pressure to photograph our lives in the best way we can, showcasing our bests, being the best - I am pushing all of it into the frame, including everything into the rectangles and celebrating how it is, not what others would like to see. I don’t want images of white walls when we have wallpaper and nor do I want pictures of clean children in best outfits when I love their grubby faces and bobbled shirts. Meeting my Nan for breakfast in our local cafe, I asked her about the camera she used during the late 80s early 90s and if she still had it. She told me that it was long gone and she couldn’t even remember which one it was. She told me that over the years she had a lot of cameras, quite possibly around 15 different models, but it wasn’t the camera she was ever interested in, it was always about the photos. During late last year, I was out with my children, exploring and taking pictures of them, when I thought about that camera my Nan owned again. How, if I could find the same model, it would be fantastic photographing my children and family on it - like a beautiful photographic circle.
lens and the camera. Her way of showing us in the future and how much she loved her family. In the past she told me that the camera was never essential, it was a tool to create the image.
I had no idea what the make or model was, but I would never forget the long black shape, the flash that could be attached to the side, the clamshell opening front and my absolute favourite part as a child - the flat red shutter button. Spending the whole of December, I trawled through internet auctions and image searches looking for this little slice of family history. Spending evening after evening I sat searching for a 1980s black camera in the hope it would trigger my memory, when one night while reading vintage point and shoot camera reviews, I scrolled down and there it was, my heart skipped a beat. The camera which held so many beautiful memories for me was an Olympus XA2 and looked exactly as I remembered all those 30 odd years ago. I instantly found one online, and without any hesitation I purchased it. As soon as the camera was delivered, I knew I had to go and visit my nan at her home and take her portrait. It only seemed right that she filled the first frames on this camera that holds so many nostalgic memories. Contacting the amazing Digitalab, they helped me with all my analogue questions, and after chatting with Alex, I had a box of mix brand and speed films ordered, delivered and ready to go. I excitedly showed my Nan the camera, placing it into her hands but she didn’t remember it. At first, I was disappointed that she didn’t have a spark of memory. But wonderfully I realised that she captured 100’s of photos, she only had eyes for what was through the
Taking her portrait on the camera felt role reversal strangely, but we had the most entertaining afternoon playing and making more printed memories to add to the photographic collection we were collectively making. Her environmental portrait shows her standing on her front step, laughing about the way she used to constantly annoy others with her camera and now, it was payback time. Receiving the developed images back from Digitalab a large number were out of focus, but that didn’t matter. It just showed me that this project is about slowing down and learning. That this adventure photographing my family is going to be full of blurred moments - for what life is crystal clear? It has made me reload more film and shoot again. For this personal project of looking through the glass isn’t about the perfection, it is about the shadows of passing the time deep within the frames and making sure I preserve them and take my time to see what I want to remember.
- Karah Mew www.theglassnarrator.com
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multi award winning
P R I N T & WA L L A RT est. 1949 Proud Trade Partners of the Guild of Photographers
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Image of the Year Classical Portrait Category
WINNER - Bee Jackson RUNNER-UP - Maryna Halton
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Image of the Year Commercial Category
WINNER - Ian Knaggs RUNNER-UP - Andrew Ford
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Image of the Year Newborn Baby Category
WINNER - Joanna Bradley RUNNER-UP - Joanna Bradley
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Image of the Year Pet Category
WINNER - Jason Allison RUNNER-UP - Jason Allison
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Image of the Year Creative & Digital Art Category
WINNER - Claire Osborne RUNNER-UP - Nathalie Rouquette
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Image of the Year Equine Category
WINNER - Deanne Ward RUNNER-UP - Luke Parkinson
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Š Sal Cincotta
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The world is my studio Profoto A1
We created the Profoto A1 with a round head that delivers light that’s both natural and beautiful both on camera and off. It’s also incredibly easy and to use, with superfast recycling and a longlasting battery, so you’ll never miss a shot. It might be the smallest light we’ve ever made, but the creative possibilities are enormous. Discover the world’s smallest studio light at profoto.com
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Image of the Year Wedding Category
WINNER - Lee Hatherall RUNNER-UP - Ryan Browne
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Image of the Year Wildlife Category
WINNER - Tracey Lund RUNNER-UP - Tracey Lund
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Make money from your photography with Alamy Whether it’s your full-time job or a weekend hobby; join our community who are already selling their imagery to over 100,000 customers worldwide
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* up of ÂŁ500 offer exclusive to members of The Guild of Photographers 60to a: value Creative Light- Magazine - Issue 29
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Customer Service How to use Social Media to your advantage
Social media empowers customers. It provides all of us a public medium through which to share our praise or, as is becoming more common, to voice our grievances. As business owners, we should embrace this. Enhanced communication is a fantastic thing, and when our customers feel so connected to our brand that they engage with us on social media, we’re doing a good job. Or are we? When it comes to customer service, there are dangers we need to avoid. As our social media customer service improves, there are companies for whom more traditional customer service is suffering.
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FAILED CUSTOMER SERVICE I speak from experience here when I suggest that there are companies out there who have let their traditional forms of customer service suffer in favour of managing their social media. It was a couple of years ago now, so I’ve no doubt they’ve improved by this point, but I had an issue with my mobile provider O2, and I called them to discuss. When this didn’t solve my problem, I emailed. When this didn’t help, I took to Twitter to voice my query publicly, within minutes, I received my response. While it’s great that the company responded so quickly on social media (and you may have noticed yourself that Facebook is now labelling those companies who respond quickly to requests on their page as ‘quick responders’, it’s a real shame that their other channels didn’t work so efficiently. This isn’t the only case like this. There have been plenty of occasions where companies have failed their customer via their more traditional customer service channels, and the customer had only received a response/their desired response when they took their query to social media. It’s a trend that teaches our audience that the best way to get our attention is in a public forum when, especially when it comes to complaints, it’s much better for us to keep those queries out of the public eye.
BEST PRACTICE Of course, while we mustn’t neglect other channels in favour of social media, it’s still important to have a clear strategy in place to help you manage your social channels effectively. Make the most of social media as a channel for your customer service. There are some excellent practice rules you should be trying to take on board: To make the most of social media as a channel for customer service, there are many good practice rules you should be trying to decide on board:
1.Respond to all questions/ comments within 4 hours if possible 2. Provide an alternative method of communication if the issue needs to be taken off social media - for example, give people an email address or phone number to call. 3. Remember your responses on social media are public, so be professional. 4. Include in your bio any days/ times you’re not available, e.g. This account is operated Monday-Friday.
BEYOND SOCIAL MEDIA While ensuring social media channels are fully managed in a way that enables them to perform customer service well, it is essential that they are not the only medium for excellent customer service. People often take to social media to air their complaints because they know it’s a public forum and they expect they will get a faster response, and solution, here because you don’t want them talking about negative things in the open. But the reality shouldn’t be this way. By providing alternative contact methods and being approachable across all of them, you can encourage your audience to interact with you and come to you for their questions and issues across all channels. When we condition our audience to believe that they’ll only get excellent service by airing their grievances publicly, they’re just going to air them publicly in the future. It’s a key lesson in digital marketing. Yes, we must optimise our social media channels, but it is only through maintaining every single customer touch point that we can provide the customer experience the today’s audiences expect. - Laura Hampton  Digital Marketing Manager Impression  Issue 29 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Image of the Year Flora & Insect Category
WINNER - Ruth Morris RUNNER-UP - Judith Lawley
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ON TREND, EASY TO SELL AND WOWS CLIENTS We’re talking folio boxes. Folio boxes are fast becoming the hottest product in the photography industry and it’s easy to see why. Below are just the benefits at a glance but there’s all sorts of science and psychology that goes along with it; we don’t just make this stuff up ;)
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Credit: Wendy De Craemer
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3XM
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3xmsolution.com
Image of the Year Landscape Category
WINNER - Heather Burns RUNNER-UP - Emily Endean
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Image of the Year Children’s Portrait Category
WINNER - Sarah Wilkes RUNNER-UP - Sarah Wilkes
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Digital FineArt Collection Turning Images into Art
Making paper since 1584 The Digital FineArt Collection includes exclusive fine art inkjet papers which are designed to meet the requirements of photographers and artists. Choose from three different surfaces: Matt smooth, Matt textured, Glossy and Canvas. Available in rolls and sheets. TRIAL PACKS AVAILABLE IN A4 AND A3+ FORMATS
Issue 29 - Creative Light Magazine : 69 uksales@hahnemuehle.com • 08453 300 129 • www.hahnemuehle.co.uk • #hahnemuehleUK
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Image of the Year Birds Category
WINNER - Claire Osborne RUNNER-UP - Tracy Lund
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... AND TIME “Shuttertax have a very straight forward and efficient way of working which requires very little effort from me.” We wanted to tell you what a fantastic online accounting service we provide for photographers but we decided to let Guild members tell you for themselves.
“The process of switching was painless and it has made me more productive, saves time and costs far less.”
INVALUABLE “I’ve found Paul's knowledge of tax issues invaluable, and he responds quickly to any questions I've asked. I've absolutely no regrets signing up with Shuttertax.”
NO ‘ACCOUNTANT JARGON’ “Any questions I had were answered fully without the use of 'accountant jargon'.” “He goes out of his way to explain things to me in a way that I will understand and answers my questions quickly.”
UNDERSTAND MY BUSINESS “They both completely understand my business, having "been there, done that!" themselves.” “Paul and his wife know the business too which he tends to keep quiet! They were excellent togs so know what hurdles we all face with running our business.”
PASSIONATE TO HELP “Paul is a brilliant guy, extremely helpful, understanding, and within minutes you will realise that you've found someone who's passionate to help other photographers.”
SAVED ME MONEY “Shuttertax has definitely saved me money in my first year and with Paul's help, I am sure my business will grow and grow.” “Paul took most of the tedium of accounting off my hands, and in completing two tax assessments for me so far, has certainly saved me more money than I've paid Shuttertax.” 72
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NO QUESTION IS TOO STUPID “No question is too stupid, communication is excellent and my tax returns have been painless now for two years.” “Paul patiently and expertly answered every single 'daft question' I threw at him and due to his expertise and patience my self assessment return has now been filed in record time and with the minimum of stress on my part.”
TOP NOTCH SERVICE “Their customer service and professionalism is top notch too, after only a couple of months of working with Shuttertax I can see it has been a great decision and I can highly recommend them.” “Their professionalism and customer service speaks volumes about how they view you as a client.”
FRIENDLY “It felt like talking to a knowledgeable friend who's keen to help, rather than an accountancy firm who only see me as a commercial opportunity.”
UP TO DATE INFORMATION “Paul assured me that I would have up to date account information at my fingertips but without all the hard work getting there.”
ACCOUNTANT WAS CHARGING ME A FORTUNE “I recently switched from a High Street accountant who was charging me a fortune and had me typing up spreadsheets and labelling invoices every month - time consuming and tedious!”
EXTREMELY REASONABLE FEES “They have simplified how information is recorded through the use of QuickBooks Online, providing access to information and reports I didn't previously have.”
“As if their friendly, professional service wasn't enough, I think their fees are extremely reasonable with no hidden costs which have resulted in reducing my accountancy fees by more than two thirds.”
TRANSFERRING IS SEAMLESS “The process of transferring my accounts to Shuttertax has been seamless. I cannot thank him enough and hope he won't regret all the extra transactions I get in as I have more time to focus on the business!”
WOW! “Wow, I wish I’d found Shuttertax years ago!” “I am definitely a customer for life!!”
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Image of the Year Maternity Category
WINNER - Natasha Ince RUNNER-UP - Natasha Ince
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PRE-PAYMENTS
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S MADE SIMPLE
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Qualified Photographer
Gary Neville
Gary demonstrates an eye for different things, lighting and composition. Whilst Gary was photographing for his ‘365’ project (to photograph an image every day for a year), some day’s Gary would get to the end of the day without having got the shot and then set about shooting things out of their typical environment. For Gary’s successful Qualified Panel he selected 21 images demonstrating a range of his photography.
Wild birds – Demonstrating wild birds in flight, included birds in their natural environment. These shots have been achieved by spending time in wildlife hides or whilst out on walks in woodlands. Demonstrates the ability to focus and compose a shot before the bird leaves and flies off. Frozen bubbles – Demonstrating macro focusing technique and ability to focus on the bubble freezing. The bubbles rarely freeze, even with added glucose sugar, meaning that if one does start to freeze I need to set up and compose really quickly (as I don’t know the exact spot the bubbles will land) all before the bubble bursts. (I’m also working is freezing cold temperatures so I don’t want to stay out there too long). Insects – Demonstrating my macro photography. Composing an image where the insect is the centre of focus, with as clear and out of focus background as possible. Getting as close to the insect without causing it harm or discomfort, or scaring it off. Puffins – Demonstrating wild birds in their natural environment. Having stayed out on Skomer Island three times I have had a chance to experience this ‘clowns of the sea’ and they are charming bird, especially when waddling around with a beak full of sand eels or flying passed like a small bullet. These shots have been achieved by watching and appreciating the puffins in their natural environment. Demonstrates the ability to focus and compose a shot before the bird leaves and flies off. Kingfishers – Demonstrating wild birds in their natural environment. I love photographing this small extremely colourful birds. These shots have been achieved by spending time in wildlife hides. Demonstrates the ability to focus and compose a shot with a clear background before the bird leaves and flies off. Vehicles – Demonstrating vehicles and the power/speed of the cars/ planes as they speed passed the camera lens. Demonstrating my panning and focus abilities. - Gary Neville
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congratulations Gary Neville
Qualified Photographer January 2019
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CEWE are proud to be a trade partner of The Guild of Photographers We are a European market and technology leading, innovative photo and online service provider. With over 50 years of experience, we are renowned for our dedication to outstanding print quality.
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“Best Photo Printing Worldwide� Voted for by a global panel of experts in our industry, the CEWE PHOTOBOOK has been recognised for its exceptional quality and the range of cover types as well as Highlights.
Special dea ls for Guild members coming soo n!
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Qualified Professional Photographer
Emma Campbell Emma’s collection of equestrian portraits taken within the last two years were submitted for her successful Qualification with The Guild of Photographers. The collection of images include a mixture of varying breeds and ages. The youngest being a foal, two days old. When photographing horses, Emma looks to capture their personalities and works with available light. Her body of work submitted for qualification was taken throughout different seasons and at seven different locations. The majority of the horses and the foals are on the UK Rare Breeds list. Through the development of her work Emma helps to promote UK equine breeds at risk. Emma is based just outside Penrith in the beautiful lake District with her husband Calum and her cat, Mog. For further information on her photography please visit her website: www.ejcampbell.photography/equestrianphotography/
congratulations Emma Campbell
Qualified Professional Photographer December 2018 82
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Creativity Backgrounds has just launched it’s new Translucient Backdrop, a beautiful flexiglass option used to
transform light. Use it to diffuse light in commercial and portrait photography, or as a backlit background. It can also be used as a tabletop backdrop, it offers a fine 75% light transmittance. https://www.photography-backgrounds.co.uk/Diffusion-and-Reflector/150012-Flexiglass.html
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© Sian Lewis Photography
NEW!
“I knew right away that I wanted to use it for backlit parent shots during newborn sessions. I’ve tried this two different ways in the past; lighting a pale grey backdrop which required a bit of faffing with light placement right and quite a bit of editing, and then standing the parents in front of my big octoabox. This works well but requires a close crop due to the size of the octa so it can be rather limiting. By putting the luminescence in front of the octa, it gave me a much larger working space and made the light that bit softer, perfect! I’ve also been wanting to replicate window light in the studio for ages and have tried various ways to achieve it, none of which worked. I'd previously tried putting layers of net curtains in front of the light but the light stand was still visible and it looked messy. The Luminescence was ideal and it was so quick and easy to set up and though it lets lots of light through, you can't see the light stand through it. I added some net curtains in front of it to make it more window like and the final result was pretty much exactly what I wanted to achieve. I think with a little more tweaking to the set up, it will be perfect. There are so many more things I want to try with it, including making a scrim for outdoor sessions on bright days and one for the studio so I can be moved around easily without needing to move light stands. I would definitely recommend this to other photographers, if you like backlit shots, it makes shooting them an absolute breeze.”
Sian Lewis
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TIP SHEET #8 How to Create Fake Shadows
As well as the colour, it’s the shadows in a picture that help to give it mood and atmosphere so in this tutorial I want to show you how you can add in extra shadows. In this example we’ll create a shadow that looks as though it’s coming from light shining through a window frame and casting the shadow onto the background. This technique makes use of shapes that come pre installed in Photoshop and with the combination of Smart Objects for flexibility and giving the option of making adjustments at a later stage, a Blur Filter and Layer Mask they can be quickly and easily transformed.
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Step 1: Blank Layer Begin by making sure that your Foreground and Background colours are at their default of Black and White by pressing D on the keyboard. Then click to add a new blank layer to the top of the layer stack and rename this layer ‘window’
Step 2: Custom Shape Tool Now choose the Custom Shape Tool that you’ll find in the Tool Bar and then in the options bar that appears at the top of the screen there is a Shape drop down menu. In here there are lots of different shapes preinstalled in Photoshop and one of them is a 3 x 3 grid of squares; this is what we’ll use to create our window frame shadow. Choose the 3 x 3 Grid by clicking on it and the also in the options bar ensure that ‘Pixels’ is selected.
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Step 3: Place the Grid Now click in the upper left hand corner of the image and drag out the grid shape. Note: holding down the shift key at the same time as dragging will ensure that the grid remains proportionate. Once you have the grid in place we’ll now make it appear slightly thicker so that the final effect looks more realistic by pressing CMD/CTRL + J to duplicate it. Then, with the Move Tool (V) and the RIGHT arrow key on the keyboard press to move the duplicate to the right 4 times and then press the UP 4 times. Repeat this process one more time.
Step 4: Smart Object With the upper most copy of the window layer active, hold down the shift key and click on the first window layer so that now all three layers are active/highlighted. Then go to the fly out menu in the top right of the layers panel and choose Merge Layers or go to Layers > Merge Layers. Then go to Filter > Convert to Smart Filter because we’ll be using a blur for this effect and having a Smart Filter will enable us to adjust it quickly and easily at a later stage.
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Step 5: Gaussian Blur Now that we have our window layer converted into a Smart Object go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and because we want this effect to be quite subtle, add in a Pixel Radius of around 150. This will blur and soften down the window frame / grid. It’s your choice now whether you want the shadow to be on the male subject or not. If you wanted to remove it then simply add a Layer Mask and paint with a Black Brush over the male subject. To reduce the shadow falling on the male subject as opposed to removing it completely, paint with a Black Brush but with a reduced opacity amount.
Step 6: Warp If you wanted to make it appear as though the window frame was slightly misshapen due to it being cast onto the wall from the side, we can add a little Warp. To do this first of all click on the chain icon between the layer thumbnail and layer mask to turn it off / unlink them both. Then click on the thumbnail of the window frame and go to Edit > Transform > Warp. This temporarily reveals the grid without any blur so we can easily see what we are adjusting. To warp the frame simple click and drag inside the Warp adjustment.
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Step 7: Finishing Touches At this stage the only finishing touches I apply here are to firstly with a soft edged round brush and a black foreground colour, paint around the outside edges of the frame to help it blend in much more natural with the environment. Also we can now use the layer Opacity to control how subtle, or not, we want the effect to appear.
Bonus Tip: Colour As well as shadows giving a picture mood and atmosphere so does the colour / tone. In this example a warm to cool gradient has been added to give the impression there is a warm light source from outside the right hand side of the image. To create this effect a new gradient was added using Layer > New Fill Layer > Gradient. From the various gradient presets I used the Violet/Orange (5th gradient) and adjusted the colours then changed the blend mode of this gradient layer to Soft Light.
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It shouldn’t happen to a…
newborn photographer Not many professional photographers come home from a day’s shoot covered in body waste, but for newborn photographers, a smattering of wee and poo is all part of the day job. It’s a hazard that comes with the territory; and for Sarah Wilkes of Sarah Wilkes Photography, it’s something you simply have to get used to. She said: “You take a nappy off a baby, and it’s going to poo on you. You just have to crack on with it, and make sure you have spare clothes.” Claire Elliot, a panel member of The Guild of Photographers and newborn photographer, agrees:
“The thing is once you get the nappy off and air gets to the baby’s bits. Well let’s say 95 per cent of the time you get a little gift from baby. Boys are worse than girls because they pee up in the air and over their own heads. They can be a nightmare. “I remember once I was wrapping a baby for a shot and the mother told me the baby was constipated. Well as soon as I lifted the legs up, it was a poo-nami! I was covered. The parents are usually mortified. But if you’re going to be a newborn photographer you can’t be squeamish about it.” Newborn is one of the fastest growing sectors in the photography industry. The shoots capture babies at just a few days old – usually between 4 and 14 – and it is a sector not for the faint-hearted. Bodily functions aside, newborn photography brings with it a unique set of challenges, from finding suitable props to manoeuvring babies into the perfect pose. 94 the : best Creative Lightyou Magazine Issue 29 milk-drunk baby. And for results, need a -sleeping,
Claire Elliot
“I remember once I was wrapping a baby for a shot and the mother told me the baby was constipated. Well as soon as I lifted the legs up, it was a poo-nami! Sarah said: “Getting the baby to go to sleep can be the biggest challenge. I give parents a packed information sheet ahead of their shoot, but the most important thing is to try to keep the baby awake in the hours before a shoot and feed them as soon as they arrive. “I also make sure the studio is lovely and warm and play white noise – usually the sound of the womb – to encourage sleep.” Babies are easier to pose when asleep. And for anyone considering a move into the newborn photography, both Claire and Sarah agree the baby’s safety is paramount. Claire said: “There’s the safety element of putting babies into poses, and positions that are not completely natural. You must learn how babies can be manipulated safely without damaging their body parts. “When I began 18 years ago, there was no newborn baby training available. So I spoke to local medical people I knew – paediatricians, nurses – and learned from them the right way to move a baby’s limbs around, as well as what to look out for.” Like Claire, Sarah was one of the first newborn photographers in the UK. She discovered the industry when pregnant with her first child and was blown away by the images she was seeing from the US. She combined her experience in childcare – she was previously a nursery nurse – as well as her passion for photography to carve out her new career.
Both Claire and Sarah run training sessions for budding newborn photographers. Claire also works with the Newborn Baby Posing Company Ltd, in association with the Guild of Photographers. While Sarah coowns the The Newborn and Portrait Show. Claire said: “Watching parents as they see the images I’ve captured of their baby, who is so tiny and so young. The look on their faces is what makes it all worthwhile. Especially if they have special pose in mind and you achieve that for them, that’s the best. What we do as newborn photographers is produce memories.” Sarah agrees: “Seeing the parents’ faces when they look at the images of their child who, even two weeks later, has already changed. It is so rewarding, especially if they cry. More so when the dad’s cry.” Claire added: “Like everyone else, we need money for rent and for living, but it’s not a job you do for the money. It’s for that look, the satisfaction you get from seeing the parents. Otherwise, it would be too hard to put up with all the poo.”
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